Blog

When you do an airfare search on CheapAir.com, you will sometimes see a category listed on the results page, included with all the airlines, called ”Mix & Match”. Many of you have asked us what this means.

The “Mix & Match” category essentially lets you combine two one way fares, that may or may not be on the same airline, to form a round trip. “Mix & Match” options come in handy when either (1) the best possible fare for an itinerary requires travel on one airline going out and another airline coming back; or (2) the airline with the most convenient outbound flight doesn’t have a convenient return flight or vice versa.

Our search engine, designed by our own team of developers, does an excellent job of looking for “Mix & Match” possibilities, especially for domestic itineraries. Using “Mix & Match” combinations, we are often able to find better priced or more convenient trips that aren’t available on other travel sites — and certainly not on the airline sites.

But it is important to understand that the “Mix & Match” category is not always the best option. This is because, in some markets, one or more airline may have a special round trip fare that is only valid if you fly that same airline in both directions. In those markets, a “Mix & Match” itinerary will preclude you from taking advantage of that special.

So when should you use the “Mix & Match” category? If you are looking to travel on one specific airline, you are always better off explicitly selecting that airline instead of “Mix & Match”. That will insure that you see the largest number of options for that particular carrier. On the other hand, if you are not set on one specific carrier, and the “Mix & Match” fare is lower than all the others, definitely check it out. Not only are you likely to save money on your air fare, but you may also find a more convenient set of flights.

If you like this post, please share it on:

Post by: cheapair

Here at CheapAir, we’re a team of travel enthusiasts and tech geeks. In a world with an overwhelming amount of travel information and deals, we want to help you make great travel decisions by arming you with true airfare intelligence. We provide tips and advice from our expert Travel Advisors — based entirely in the U.S. — and we update you on the latest news and insider information. Plus, we love to crunch the numbers behind the airline industry to make you a smarter shopper (did we mention we’re geeks yet?). Combine all of this with top-notch customer service, and you have CheapAir. Have a question that you want answered? We’re here to help you in any way we can.

39 Comments

From September I have been searching fares for R/T, NYC/LAX. Most fares came in around US$ 300.00 +/- flying the same airlines both ways. Today I got lucky with Cheapair finding me an outbound flight from one budjet airline and a inbound flight from another budget airline for a total of US$ 259.00 incl tax and fees. Thanks, CheapAir for your help.

Flights from Houston to Paris, France for your dates are starting at $1236 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. Unfortunately there are no discounts for seniors. To view flights, you can follow this link: http://bit.ly/HaWr5b. Please let us know if you need any assistance with finding flights.

Hello,
I need a great deal, 2adults and 2children (1yr old and 3yr old)
Would the tickets be cheaper if my friend and I don’t sit next to each other on the plane? or can I get a group discount?
Chicago to Puerto Rico- Jan 15th
Puerto Rico to Chicago- Feb 10th

For your flights, fares are starting at about $325 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. Children up to 2 years old (24 months), are not required to have their own seat for travel within the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. You will need to purchase a ticket at the full price for the 2 adults and your 3 year old. A child up to 2 years old (24 months) is usually charged 10% of an adult fare plus taxes, even if the infant will be on the lap of another passenger for the flight. To book your flights, you will need to call us at 1-800-243-2724 to speak with a Travel Advisor who will be able to assist you. Unfortunately there are no group discounts (4 passengers isn’t considered a group – 10 or more is).

For your flights, I’d definitely advise to buy as soon as possible since fares for early January are only getting more expensive. In checking your dates, it appears that Jan 6 – Jan 25th would be the cheapest dates. Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights. You can also call us at 1-800-243-2724 to speak with one of our Travel Advisors who can assist you as well.

Hi, my husband and I purchased a 2 night, 3 day stay in Las Vegas and are in need of 2 inexpensive tickets (to and from). The stay is open date, any week through 3/2015 , Sunday – Thursday only. We want to plan the stay around the least expensive airfare. How do I search for airline tickets without an exact date?

That’s a great question. You can use our MapSearch, which will allow you to search flights without a date to find the cheapest days to fly. You’ll be shown a map, from which you can view destinations and costs. If you click on your destination, then you’ll be shown a calendar of airfares with the cheapest days. It’s a great tool when you’re flexible with your travel dates. Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

Fares are currently starting at around $320 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1gH040l Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

Airlines will provide a military discount, but it’s not always a guarantee. Currently, flights are starting at around $357 per person. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1iKzrqs I would recommend trying to contact the airlines to see if they can provide a discount. Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

Currently, fares from Panama City, Florida to Boston for your dates are starting at around $395 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. Unfortunately the only way to book these flights would be to call us at 1-800-243-2724 to speak with a Travel Advisor who can assist you. Please let us know if you have any questions.

In checking the fares for both of those routes, it appears that Tampa would be the cheaper option. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/PR2kZT Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

Currently the cheapest fares for your dates are starting at around $371 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. Since you’re looking to travel in a month, you should book now or as soon as possible to avoid the fares from increasing any further. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1qELXfv Please let us know if you need any assistance finding flights.

The cheapest flights for your dates are starting at around $539 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1iunNlm Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

In checking flights, Orlando will be the cheaper option with the dates June 20 – 28. Fares for those dates are starting at around $413 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1mvHnNX At this time, there are 5 seats at the lowest fare, so you can book them all at once… but sometimes when booking a large group it can be better to break up your search into smaller groups like 2 or 3 since airfares are sold in blocks based on a class of service with the cheapest being shown when searching. If there are only 4 seats left at the lowest class of service and you are searching for 5, then the next available lowest fare with 5 seats available would show up in the search, not those 4 cheaper seats. Please let us know if you need any assistance with finding flights.

Currently fares from Chicago to Los Angeles for those dates are starting at around $358 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. I’d recommend to purchase your flights sooner than later since fares will increase the closer it gets to your date of birth. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1nBKLuV Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

I’m a little overwhelmed in my search for flights leaving from Chicago to Paris for spring break. We are wanting to leave around 3/20/15 (or a day or two after) and are wanting to be gone around 5-7 days. We would need to return by the 28th. I have no idea the best day to fly or the best time to book flights. There are three of us.

In checking the fares from Chicago to Paris, the cheapest flights are starting at around $1100 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. That price works for both 5 or 7 days, departing from 3/20 – 3/25 or 3/27. If you can depart 3/19 – 3/26, the fares are starting at around $1000 per person. I’d advise to continue to monitor the fares more and book no later than January 1, 2015. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1hecMHb Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

My boyfriend and I are looking for 2 inexpensive tickets to Vietnam this summer, round-trip, from 22 or 23, July and come back to Texas after 3 or 4 weeks. We want to flight from DFW to Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam. Please help!

Currently fares from Dallas to Ho Chi Minh from July 22 to August 12 are starting at around $1725 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1ovFsKo Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

I am currently looking for tickets to Dubai International Airport from the UK Heathrow Airport somewhere between the 5th of july to the 10th of july until 20th august

I am looking for a ticket of 3 adults, we are students therefore looking for the cheapest flights, we are only considering flying with Emirates airlines and British Airways

we have looked on every website and called every Agency but could not find a suitable price for students, all the prices we found were far to expensive for us, we have now turned to this website as our last emergency point with only less than 1 month left, as we have heard many great things from this online company, we have some friends who managed to get last minute cheap student deal tickets to the same destination last year, and ever since they have been telling everybody all about it.

Thank you for taking the time to read this as i am pretty sure that the company is very busy having to deal with many customers everyday, but we would really appreciate it if you could save our holiday and find some amazing cheap student deals (direct) to Dubai International Airport.

Hi Idiris, We are never too busy to help with our customers. Your proposed dates and airlines are giving us a range of fares between $700-800 USD. That may be about as low as we can provide for the dates you are considering. It’s a bit close to travel time which may be the biggest factor in getting you a better price. Hope this helps!

The cheapest flights start at around $370 per person, not including any baggage fees that may apply. Being flexible with your dates of travel is the best way to get the cheapest flights. You can use this link: http://bit.ly/VMacys and plug in your dates. I’d suggest flying on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Saturday since those are the cheaper days to fly. Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

looking for 2 adults and 1 child airfare from Amarillo or Lubbock TX to AVL, GSP, Knoxville or Tri-Cities TN or somewhere close to that; leaving about December 18 to 24th and returning December 25th to 31st; 7or 8 days total trip; dates, times and airports are flexible. Can’t find anything less than $580 or so; any suggestions?

It looks like flying Amarillo to Knoxville is coming up as the cheapest when traveling Dec 18 – 25th. In fact, returning back on Christmas day will be the cheapest option for any of those routes since Christmas day is a little less expensive than the surrounding dates. You can use our Cheap Holiday Flights Index to read tips and view the best/worst days to fly during the holiday season. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1lOrkcP Please let us know if you need any assistance with finding flights.

You have a few options that could reduce the price. If you can depart on Dec 11th, that will bring the fares lower. Another way to reduce the costs would be to return on Dec 18th. That would drop the fares below $300. Either way, I’d recommend to book now since that’s around the peak holiday season where fares are high are likely to only get more expensive the closer we get. Keep in mind, when you book on CheapAir.com, if the price for the same itinerary goes down any time before your trip, we’ll pay you back the difference in the form of a travel voucher for up to $100 per ticket! Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

I’m looking to get a flight for 2 adults from detroit to new orleans for april 24th-may 3rd 2015 my dates are not flexable due to the fact that we have tickets to Jazz fest on the 25th and will be going a a cruise the 26th-may 3rd. I’m almost positive I missed the best deal that was $177 round trip and I’m beating myself up about it.. any ideas as if the prices are going to drop at all again?

In checking the fares for your route, I would suggest monitoring the flights for another week or two. If you’re not seeing any drop in price, then I’d buy. Since you are not very flexible with your dates, I wouldn’t put your purchase off too long though. I’d wait another week or two tops. To view flight schedules and book, you can use this link: http://bit.ly/1DizyUn Keep in mind, when you purchase flights with CheapAir if the price for the same itinerary goes down any time before your trip, we’ll pay you back the difference in the form of a travel voucher for up to $100 per ticket! Please let us know if you need any help with finding flights.

With our innovative new search engine, you can search for cheap flights, Cheap airline tickets, discount airfares and cheap international flights faster and more easily than ever before. We also offer cheap domestic travel, discount business class travel and last minute airfares from dozens of consolidators across the country. Our fare spiders search all over the internet to find the lowest cost airfares, so you don't have to. And when shopping for fares, remember to compare apples to apples: unlike most travel sites our flight search results show total air fare prices, including all airline ticket taxes.